In-sink garbage disposal units have been in existence for the better part of a century. However, many localities were quick to outlaw their use for fear of placing too much strain on the local sewer system. In recent years, many such prohibitions have been lifted and the popularity of garbage disposals has grown dramatically. Nevertheless, as the number of installed disposals continues to grow, a few obvious deficiencies in the general design and usage have become apparent.
Disposals are normally installed under the kitchen sink. The top opening in a disposal is called a “disposal well” and is fitted into the drain opening in the bottom of a sink. The remainder of the disposal unit resides in the cabinet or cupboard below the sink. This lower portion of the disposal includes the blades or other means for chopping or shredding waste food. After the waste food is reduced in size, the disposal pushes it out into an effluent disposal system (i.e., a sewer system).
Garbage disposals provide for a simple and clean method of ridding a house of kitchen waste food materials, including: produce trimmings such as the ends of carrots, after-dinner plate scraps, eggshells, etc. To utilize a garbage disposal, a cook simply places waste food materials into the sink, turns on the tap so that water is flowing into the disposal and pushes the waste food into the disposal well. The cook then turns the disposal unit on and continues to feed the waste food into the disposal well. When the disposal has sufficiently chopped or shredded the waste food, the cook then shuts the disposal off and turns off the flow of tap water. The processed waste food is flushed out of the disposal and into the drain system by the flow of water.
One common problem with disposals is that the opening in the disposal well is usually large enough to allow non-waste food items to enter the disposal. Items such as eating utensils, kitchen knives, etc. often fall into the disposal well and can cause both significant damage to the disposal and can be damaged by the disposal when the unit is turned on. Placing a rubber stopper or other device over the disposal well can reduce such accidents, but stopper devices also can impede the flow of water and waste food into the disposal well. Although some stopper devices attempt to address this problem by providing drainage holes or waste food openings, the design of such devices often allows non-waste food items to enter the disposal well.
Additionally, current sink disposal stoppers can be difficult to insert and remove from the disposal well and are most often completely useless for otherwise assisting a cook in his or her food-preparation and kitchen cleaning tasks. Therefore, there is a need for a sink disposal tool that allows waste food and water to enter a disposal well while denying entry to utensils and other similar items; that is easy to install and remove from a disposal well; and that can be utilized by a cook or other person to assist him or her with other kitchen tasks.